Chapter 15 – A Change of Plans
Hello everyone, I'm back again from my vacation. It was a lot of fun, but I'm going to need another vacation after this one.
Ahsokanerd, You're right about this story taking a ooc turn. It's funny that you mentioned "The Order Redeems", (small spoiler) I intend to follow a similar path with my two stories.
However, I've thought about this story during my vacation. You may have already noticed the name of this chapter. I am going to change things a bit. I think it's still a bit too early in the story to begin with these things.
I'm going to remove the interview from the story for now. A few things I wanted to use in the interview I'm going to add to this chapter in a different way.
Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter.
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General point of view
Barriss Offee was currently waiting outside one of the classrooms in the Temple where the younglings were usually being taught. Master Unduli had told her that Master Shaak Ti was discussing the program's contents with the holonet studio. Barriss had learned that Master Ti was still teaching a class for a few hours, so the padawan had spent some time in the library to study for a bit. Seeing as how medical science continually evolved, she had to keep up her studies in order to become a skilled healer. Despite the problems she went through a little while ago, Barriss was still determined to become a healer.
When the lesson was almost over Barriss had made her way towards the classroom where Master Ti was. After a few minutes, the doors opened and the younglings started coming out of the room. Barriss stood to the side and allowed the group to pass. A few of them were giving her strange and somewhat mean stares, but she had already decided not to let that bother her anymore. When the last boy had passed her, Barriss went inside the classroom.
The Togrutan Jedi Master was standing at the front of the classroom, cleaning up a few things she had used in the lesson. Shaak Ti sensed Barriss' presence and turned around to face her. "Good afternoon padawan Offee," she greeted in her usual calm voice, "How are you today?" Shaak Ti asked. It was a simple question, but Barriss was able to sense that the Jedi Master meant more with the question. "I'm doing alright Master, thank you." She replied as she bowed respectfully. Shaak Ti nodded. "That's good to hear. So, what brings you to me today?" she asked. "Well, according to my master, you were discussing the details of that program with the studio." Barriss began. Shaak Ti nodded and Barriss continued. "I spent a lot of time thinking about the Council's request for me to appear on the show. After a lot of consideration, I've decided to do it." Barriss finished. As she said that, she could sense a slight wave of surprise coming from the Togruta. "I can honestly say that I wasn't expecting you to agree to the Council's request." Shaak Ti said. "I wasn't sure about what to do at first, but I've come to the conclusion that being open to the public about several things is the least I can do to make up for the awful things I've done." Barriss replied. Shaak Ti smiled. "A very noble decision of you Barriss," Shaak Ti sighed, "However, it is no longer necessary for you to do this." The Jedi Master said. Barriss looked at the Togruta, confusion taking over her mind. "I don't… What do you mean Master?" she asked. Shaak Ti sighed again. "The majority of the Council has decided that, following a few recent developments in the war, we need to focus our efforts on the war for now." The Jedi Master explained. "It also seems that the studio has found another program that they think will attract more viewers for them, so they kind off blew it off as well." Barriss remained silent a moment after Shaak Ti finished explaining. "I see." She replied. "I appreciate the fact that you still decided to do this, Barriss. Thank you." Shaak Ti said. Barriss managed a light smile. "You're welcome Master." She replied. Barriss let out a deep breath. "You look somewhat relieved." Shaak Ti commented. "Well, to be honest Master, I was very nervous about doing that interview." Barriss admitted. "I can understand, it's not exactly normal Jedi procedures, is it?" The Togruta asked with a smile. Barriss chuckled a little bit. "I guess not." She replied. "I have another class soon, so I have to prepare for that. Is there anything else you wanted to ask?" The Jedi Master asked. Barriss shook her head. "No Master, thank you." She said as she bowed respectfully again. "You're welcome Barriss." Shaak Ti replied and Barriss left the classroom.
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Sometime later
Barriss was sitting on the couch in her quarters, cup of tea in her hand, trying to clear her head a bit. It had been very stressful for her to decide that she wanted to appear on that show. Then learning that the whole thing had been cancelled was quite a shock. The whole thing had been a rather disturbing and it had shaken her up quite a bit. Now she was just trying to get the whole thing out of her head.
She meditated for a while until she felt two familiar presences approaching her door. "Naria and Alyva." She thought to herself. She smiled. They didn't exactly meet under the best circumstances, with Nyla being through that nightmare, but they had become good friends. Barriss got up and made her way to the door. She opened it and greeted her friends. They went inside and they all sat down. "So, what brings you guys here?" Barriss asked them. "Well, we heard that you went to see Master Ti about that show. We wanted to know how it went." Naria replied. Barriss sighed. "What is it?" Alyva asked slightly confused. "It's just that I spent a lot of time thinking about whether or not I should appear on that show. I finally decided that I was going too, but then I learned from Master Ti that the whole thing had been cancelled." Barriss replied. "Oh… Really?" Naria asked in slight disbelief. "Yes, really." Barriss said again. "Wow, that's…" Alyva replied. "Yeah, I know." Barriss said. "So, now what?" Alyva asked. "Well, now I'd simply like to forgot about this whole thing." Barriss replied. "I can imagine." Naria said. "Hey Barriss, have you ever been to the marketstreets here on Coruscant?" Alyva asked. Barriss shook her head. "No, I haven't. Why?" she replied. "Naria and I were on our way there. We've been there before, it's nice to just walk around the streets and see the different stalls. Would you like to join us?" Alyva explained. "Hmm." Barriss thought it over for a moment. "Sure, sounds like a good idea." She then said with a smile. "Great, let's go then." Naria replied excitedly. The three padawans then left the Temple.
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Barriss was now walking through the streets of Coruscant along with Naria and Alyva. The two of them had mentioned on the way out that they wanted to get out and get some fresh air. When Barriss had told them about that whole thing with the interview, they'd figured that she could use some as well. The three of them were now walking in one of the market areas. These streets were always filled with countless market stalls, run by a large variety of species and all carrying an even wider array of goods.
As they walked past the stalls, Barriss couldn't help but smile. Even though it was against the Jedi Code to care much about physical possessions, it was still very nice to simply walk around the many stalls and look at all of the different goods. She could tell that Naria and Alyva had done this before, the two of them were looking around with even more enthusiasm than her. "This is always a nice place to get away from everything. This place is always active and filled with cheerful people." Naria said as she turned back to Barriss. "I know what you mean, I can just sense the happiness emanating from all around us." Barriss replied with a smile. "It's good to be away from all of the fighting for a while." She said. Naria nodded. "Yea, I know what you mean. It can get very stressing if you're constantly fighting." She replied. Alyva moved back towards the two. "Hey Alyva, finally done talking to those boys?" Naria teased her as she came close. She stopped walking and blushed. Behind her two human boys walked off in the other direction. "Hey, the Jedi Code says nothing about flirting." Alyva comments. Naria rolled her eyes and Barriss chuckled a bit. "Come on, let's keep moving. That food stall is still a bit away." Alyva said. "What food stall?" Barriss asked with a hint of confusion in her voice. "There is a little stall owned by a Twi'Lek family, Nyla found it when we first walked through these markets." Naria began to explain. "They sell several types of Twi'Lek recipes. And, I gotta say, they really know how to cook." She said with a smile. "We stop by there every time." Alyva said. "Sounds good, maybe we can bring some back for Nyla as well. I'm sure she'd prefer it over the hospital food." Barriss replied. Naria and Alyva thought about her suggestion a moment. "Good idea, I'm sure she'd enjoy some traditional Twi'Lek food. Come on, let's go." Naria said.
The three padawans continued walking down the market streets. They occasionally had to stop walking because either Naria or Alyva wandered off to some stall. Whenever this happened, Barriss and Naria or Alyva, depending on who walked off, just talked about some things and life in the Order. After the fifth time they stopped Alyva came back to Barriss and Naria. "Hey Naria, remember those books you mentioned? I believe that that stall might have one or more of them." Alyva said to Naria. "Really? Excuse me for a moment Barriss, I'm going to take a quick look." Naria said as she turned to Barriss. "Sure, go ahead. I'll wait here a moment." Barriss replied. Alyva led Naria to the stall she was just at. Barriss let her gaze around the various stalls. The selection each stall offered was completely different each time: jewelry, woodwork, some kind of trinkets, toys, books. It was quite an interesting experience to see so many cultures mixed together. She spotted a stall run by a Mirialan woman and decided to check it out for a moment. Barriss looked at her friends, Naria was looking at another stall herself and Alyva stood a few feet behind her. She locked eyes with her and Barriss gestured at the stall she was headed. Alyva nodded in understanding and turned back to Naria. A slightly wicked grin spread on her face when she spotted Naria talking to a boy next to the stall she had just been browsing. Barriss turned around again and shook her head. "Those two…" She thought to herself as she walked up to the stall.
"Hello miss." The Mirialan woman greeted when Barriss arrived. "Hello ma'am." She replied to the woman. Another person asked the saleswoman something so Barriss just browsed through the inventory. A smile spread across her face as she looked at some of the traditional Mirialan artifacts the stall had. Several bracelets, necklaces and books were available, along with several other objects. She looked around until her eyes caught something. Her smile faded as she stared at it.
"Well, you know what they say: flirting isn't against the Jedi Code." Naria said to Alyva as they walked up to Barriss. Alyva rolled her eyes and looked at Barriss. She got a little worried when she noticed her expression and the small flickers of sadness she felt emanating from Barriss. "Barriss, is something wrong?" She asked. Barriss was slightly startled as she hadn't noticed them approach. Naria also noticed this. "Did something happen?" she asked concerned. "N-no, I'm fine…I…" Barriss replied. Naria and Alyva gave each other a look. "Barriss, we're both Jedi as well remember? We can clearly sense that something is wrong." Alyva said. Barriss ignored her comment and picked up the doll she had been staring at. It was a small, simple white snow cat with blue stripes along its tail, the creature was a common sight on Mirial, her people's home world. "Excuse me, ma'am, how much is this?" She asked the woman behind the stall. "Hmm? Ah, that doll is twelve credits." She replied. Barriss took the credits out of a small pouch on her belt. "Here you go." She said as she handed over the credits. "Thank you, have a nice day." The woman replied as she accepted the credits. "You too." Barriss replied with a smile, however both Naria and Alyva could sense that it was a fake smile.
They walked away from the stall, Barriss staring at the doll in her hands. Naria and Alyva led Barriss to a small courtyard just out of the street. "Barriss, what's wrong?" Naria asked concerned. They could both sense that there was something bothering her immensely. Barriss sighed and sat down on the bench next to them. "Hey come on, you can talk to us about it. It's obviously bothering you." Alyva said as she sat down next to Barriss. "What is with the doll?" she asked as she gestured at the stuffed animal. Barriss took a deep breath. "A few weeks ago, when I was on a mission without my own master, I was placed in command of evacuating a town on the planet. It was close to the landing zone the Separatists wanted to use to invade the planet, we intercepted their plans so we prepared an ambush. A large scale battle was going to take place close by, so we had to evacuate the place to make sure that everyone was safe." Barriss began telling the story. She took another deep breath. "Everything was going well. A large number of people didn't want to leave their possessions behind, but I was able to convince them of the need to evacuate quickly. The clones that were with me had the process set up quite well. Our transports were flying around according to plan." She told her friends. "Let me guess, something bad happened, didn't it?" Naria asked. Barriss nodded. "Yes, you're right…" she continued. "During the evacuation I ended up talking to a group of children from the local orphanage. They were really excited to meet a Jedi, their enthusiasm just radiated all around them. After three consecutive months of fighting without a break, it was really nice to be around such happy children." She paused for a moment. "Among the group of children was a young Mirialan girl, she had a doll just like this one." Barriss said as she gestured at the doll in her hands. "She was a really sweet girl, she reminded me of myself. Of when I was still young and innocent." She paused and blinked away a tear. Naria noticed this and sat down on Barriss' other side. "What happened?" she asked softly. Barriss took a deep breath as she answered. "I kept talking to those kids until it was their turn to get on a transport. I walked them there and waved to them as they took off. When they were some ways of the ground I turned around. At that moment I felt a sharp shock through the Force. Before I had a change to do anything there was a large explosion in the air behind me." Naria and Alyva exchanged a look, worried about her answer. "When I turned around," Barriss continued, "there was a blazing fireball in the place of the transport those kids were on." She said in a shaky voice. A look of shock spread across Naria's and Alyva's faces. "A Separatist missile had taken out their transport. I investigated the crash site, but the only thing I could find was that girl's broken doll. All of those children were killed, just like that. They were just innocent children, they had nothing to do with anything. And they just…" Barriss stopped talking as a few tears streamed across her face. Both Naria and Alyva looked completely shocked as Barriss finished her story. Alyva put her arm around Barriss' shoulder to try and comfort her. "That's just terrible…" Naria said softly. "Other people are always so quick to make up their own opinions and assumptions about the war." Barriss said in a shakily voice. She shook her head slightly. "No one knows how horrifying this war truly." She said as she wiped away her tears. "I've seen some bad things during my missions, but nothing as terrible as that." Alyva replied. "Why didn't you talk to someone about this?" she asked Barriss. "I'm not sure. I'd rather just forgotten the whole thing, but I couldn't…" Barriss replied. "I can imagine," Naria said, "but perhaps you should talk about it with your master. It might help you feel a bit better." She offered. "Naria's right, it's not healthy to leave such feelings bottled up inside you. Master Unduli is a kind and understanding woman, I'm sure she'll understand." Alyva said. Barriss thought about their suggestion for a moment. "A-alright, I'll try to talk about it with her later." She replied a moment later. Both girls besides her nodded. "Good, remember Barriss, you don't have to deal with these things alone. Don't be afraid to ask for help with anything." Naria told her. Barriss smiled a little. "Okay, I'll be sure to remember that next time. Although, I really hope that there isn't a next time with something like this." She replied. Both Naria and Alyva chuckled a bit at her remark. "Come on, let's go and get something to eat." Alyva said as she got up. "Well?" Naria asked Barriss. "Sounds good to me." She replied with a smile, this time a genuine one.
As the three padawans moved away from the courtyard they just were, all three of them failed to notice another person leaving as well…
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That's all for this chapter.
A little background story to further explain Barriss being drawn to the Dark Side before. I wanted to use this in that interview, but I think things work out better this way.
So, who was hiding behind them and for what purpose? We'll find out in the next chapter. Right now I'm working on the next chapter for Tale of a Togruta. I think I can upload either tomorrow or the day after that. I'm a little stuck right now, I lost my train of thought while writing… very annoying. Oh well, I'll sort it out tomorrow.
For those of you that haven't already, please take a look at the story idea I have on my profile. I'd really appreciate some feedback on it.
Until next time.